REAPER SCANS
The Martial God Who Regressed to Level 2
[Translator – SCM]
[Proofreader – ilafy]
Chapter 264
The news from the Battle Net Association's headquarters in New York quickly spread around the world. People thought they would get a bonus after the third match, but everyone acted like experts as they analyzed the available options after JiHan made them public.
- Bonus options? This is a thing that exists?
- So representatives from eight countries and JiHan can choose?
- If this weren't disclosed, we would have never known.
- Why did they reveal this? Aren't things like this usually agreed on behind the scenes? lol.
- The nationality bonus seems the most effective.
- Only 20 countries will benefit from that. I think some equality issues might arise.
- Still, players from those 20 countries make up 90% of humanity's team… and isn't focusing on the elites the right choice?
Most people were interested in the nationality bonus, which they believed was the most efficient, and it became a matter of international debate. Three days after JiHan went public with the bonus options…
"We'll now be starting the option selection meeting."
Again, the country representatives gathered in the New York World Battle Net Association conference room.
"How are things going to proceed today?"
"Each representative will give a speech, and then each will vote on the bonus option they consider the best."
"I'm surprised. Only the representatives of eight countries and JiHan can vote, right? They could have decided among themselves…"
"I heard player JiHan strongly advocated for a public meeting."
"That's great for us, but why would he do that…?'
Originally, all the Association representatives shouldn't have had the right to vote. They had gained the right to do so thanks to JiHan, but they couldn't help but wonder why he would make such a choice.
"I'm not sure…"
"JiHan will be the last to go up to the podium. Then, we'll be able to understand his thoughts."
"By the way, you’re from Mexico, right? What do you plan to vote for?"
"We plan to vote for an increased chance of Gifts. An outstanding player emerging can change a country's ranking, so I think we should aim for such luck."
The nationality bonus would be better if they considered what was best for humanity, but it would pretty much mean any country that wasn’t in the top 20 would be in a supporting role.
As everyone was gauging which option to choose…
"Oh."
"They're finally coming in…"
The representatives from the eight countries and JiHan entered the conference room.
* * *
"That’s why my country, England, has concluded that the 'nationality bonus' is the option that must be chosen."
As planned, each representative from the eight countries gave a speech. With the world's attention focused on them, they all advocated for choosing the nationality bonus, which was consistent with their existing stance.
Most of the Korean viewers were in favor of the nationality bonus.
- As expected of strong countries. They only care for themselves, tsk tsk.
- Isn't this good for us as well?
- Yes. South Korea is now among the strongest countries, after all.
- The points we've been earning are no joke. We should make it to the top 10. We might even end up among the top five.
- Other than JiHan, the Sword King and Sae-ah have also earned many points.
- Yeah. We're doing well, right? Then we should agree to the nationality bonus.
Of course, those who weren’t from countries in the top 20 were less pleased.
- A bonus based on one's nationality… Won't this mean that the top-ranking countries will monopolize the benefits?
- If it gets picked, then the gap between the countries will never be narrowed.
- Although the mood seems okay right now, if humanity’s Battle Net ranking drops, dungeons might begin appearing everywhere… Shouldn't players develop evenly so they can protect their respective countries?
The sentiment was shared by the representatives in the meeting, and many country's representatives openly opposed it.
"Even if you say it's for the sake of humanity's team… In the end, aren't you doing it for your own country's benefit?"
"This bonus is mostly ineffective for mid-ranking countries."
"We oppose the nationality bonus."
Meanwhile, the representatives from the eight countries responsible for the decision glared at JiHan as the situation was broadcast live.
'I knew it would turn out like this.'
'We shouldn't have revealed the options…'
'The nationality bonus is also good for South Korea and JiHan. Why did he choose to do this?'
Things could have been easily settled, so why had he purposefully chosen the difficult path?
Meanwhile, JiHan watched the situation unfold with his arms crossed. According to Pythia's prophecy, a new option should have emerged after making the info public.
'Was the prophecy wrong…? She said a new option would appear.' When he thought about it, Pythia said one of the names she'd previously used was Nostradamus, who’d predicted the world would end in 1999. Didn’t that prove she could be wrong?
"Lastly. We will hear some words from Sung JiHan."
After the eight countries gave their speeches, JiHan slowly approached the podium.
Clap, clap, clap, clap—
Thunderous applause erupted in the conference room.
* * *
Reaper Scans
Translator - SCM
Proofreader - ilafy
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Knowing that it was JiHan who insisted on a public meeting, the Battle Net Association representatives from most countries showed a favorable attitude toward him.
- Oh, is it JiHan's turn?
- Phew, I joined the stream on time.
- I'm watching it secretly at work, but the head of the department in front of me is watching the same thing, lol.
- Our company just turned it on for all the employees to watch, lol.
As soon as it was JiHan's turn to speak, the stream’s viewers skyrocketed. His reason for arranging such a public meeting as the world’s strongest player was about to be revealed, after all.
JiHan stood at the podium and looked back at all the gazes that were intently watching him. The watchers seemed expectant, believing there was a special reason behind his insistence on a public meeting.
'It looks like Pythia was wrong.' Just when JiHan gave a sad smile and was about to start speaking…
[You're ranked 1st in your world.]
[You belong to the upper area 'Space - 4'.]
[You've been selected as MVP in the Space League more than 3 times.]
[You're receiving the attention of more than 1/5 of your species, 'Humanity'.]
[Your star does/does not have a constellation.]
[You've met the conditions to become a 'Constellation Candidate' of planet 'Earth'.]
[The hidden bonus option has been revealed.]
[The hidden bonus option 'Star Chaser' has been activated.]
Pythia's prophecy became a reality.
* * *
JiHan checked the new option before he spoke.
[Star Chaser]
[All players will chase after the player who's earned the right to become a 'Constellation Candidate'.]
[The greater the 1st-place player becomes in relation to other players of his species, the greater the growth of others will become in all aspects.]
[The effects will be enhanced further the longer the 1st place maintains their position.]
[If the 1st-place player maintains their rank for more than 300 days with this option applied, that player will officially become a constellation candidate.]
'Hmm…' The bonus option helped others catch up to the 1st-ranked player and gave that top player the chance to become a constellation candidate. The buff it provided far exceeded most of the ones the others had discussed.
'This has no effect on me.' 'Star Chaser' didn't give any buffs to the one who was ranked 1st. Rather, it was an effect that allowed others to catch up. What caught JiHan's attention the most, though, was the last line.
'If I stay in 1st place for 300 days, I can become a constellation candidate.' After the Space League match against the dragonkin, he’d reached 1st place. The gap between him and Oliver, who'd fallen to the 2nd place, wasn't huge, but he was confident that he could stay in 1st.
'I don't know how this is related to my life, but…' Pythia had told him that the prophecy would end up saving his life. He still couldn't understand why, but even without that part, 'Star Chaser' was worth choosing.
"Why's JiHan standing still…?"
"Is he nervous?"
"Is he the type of person who would get nervous? It seems that he's looking at something."
"Based on how he's pressing on the air, it seems he's reading a system message."
The representatives were curious about what he was doing.
"Everyone,” JiHan said, “a new option was just added. Could the representatives of the eight countries check it out?"
The representatives followed JiHan’s advice and checked the options. Their eyes widened in surprise when they saw what had been added.
"Th-this…"
"This wasn't here just a few moments ago…!"
"The new option, 'Star Chaser,' refers to me, of course," JiHan explained as he shared the option with everyone.
- Woah… The further ahead the 1st-place player gets, the more buffs everyone else will get?
- Isn't this perfect for humanity? Its effects are better than the nationality bonus.
- JiHan won't benefit from this…
Of course, they were worried about JiHan being excluded since he was their best player, but he didn’t seem to care.
"Let's go with this bonus option," JiHan said.
"A-are you really okay with this…? You won't receive any benefits," one of the representatives asked.
"It's okay. I'll keep 1st place anyway. Being a constellation candidate sounds interesting to me." He showed confidence in being able to keep his ranking for over 300 days.
"If you say so… we agree."
The option benefited everyone except for JiHan. The representatives did find the part about JiHan becoming a constellation candidate a bit concerning, though.
'Constellation Candidate… so he would just be a candidate?'
'Maybe he’d made for a better constellation than the others we’ve seen.'
'This option is great for the species as a whole. Growth is what matters at this moment.'
Becoming a constellation candidate sounded like a far-off story, so they cared more about the practical aspects.
"Then, let's proceed with the vote."
"The results are…"
"By unanimous decision, 'Star Chaser' has been chosen!"
Clang. Clang—
The conference room, which previously had a tense atmosphere and seemed to be a place where conflict could arise at any moment, was suddenly much more relaxed as everyone reached a miraculous agreement.
"Was that why you suggested a public meeting?" someone asked JiHan.
"Mr. Sung, did you have a prophetic dream about this? I truly didn't expect it!"
"It would have been great if you'd given us a hint…!"
The eight representatives all joked around with JiHan and smiled.
"If I had told you in advance, the prophecy might not have worked," JiHan replied as he thought, 'One of the messages is bothering me.' He recalled the glitchy message he’d seen about Earth not having a constellation.
'Is there one or not…?' Weren't the Wandering Martial God's servants constellations? Maybe they didn’t fully encompass Earth. 'I should ask Pythia about it later.'
* * *
The Divine Throne of the Thunder God sat in the center of the Wandering Martial God’s Fight Star.
Flash! Flash—!
The throne’s light spread in every direction before gathering around the Wandering martial God and sinking back into the throne. The red lightning, though, remained untouched.
'So the master won't absorb the red lightning until the end…' Dongfang watched the scene from a distance.
At that moment, the Wandering Martial God, who'd been absorbing energy, said, “Dongfang Shuo…”
"Yes, Master?"
“How's the pursuit of the Thunder God’s remnant going?”
"Pythia's chasing him."
“Go and help her.”
BZZT—
Dongfang looked at the lingering red lightning his master hadn’t absorbed and said, "Understood…"
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